COVID-19

Current vaccines against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) have reduced the severity of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). However, the drastic and quick evolution of the virus poses challenges to the development of durable and efficacious therapeutics for vaccine and antibody developers alike. See how the Bio-Plex Pro Human SARS-CoV-2 Neutralization Antibody Custom Assay Developer Kit speeds up the qualitative measurement of neutralizing antibodies (NAbs) against new SARS-CoV-2 variants, removing a roadblock in COVID-19 therapeutic development.

As SARS-CoV-2 becomes an endemic agent worldwide, communities and health agencies must figure out how to identify novel variants and track infection rates in ways that are sustainable, sensitive, and accurate. Fortunately, wastewater-based epidemiology (WBE) has proven its ability to play an important role in monitoring COVID-19 outbreaks, and Droplet Digital PCR (ddPCR) has become a cornerstone method for ongoing wastewater-based disease surveillance. In this article, we review the role of wastewater-based testing in community health before, during, and beyond the COVID-19 pandemic, and we explore why ddPCR technology is ideally suited for this application as it continues to expand and evolve.

Develop new assays in just one day with the Bio-Plex Pro Human SARS-CoV-2 Neutralization Antibody Custom Assay Developer Kit. See how in this webinar.

Understanding how T cells respond to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is critical in developing long-term therapeutic approaches, as well as helping inform strategies for future pandemics. Learn how one team at the La Jolla Institute for Immunology in San Diego, California, has been using novel T-cell activation assays to understand how our immune system responds to SARS-CoV-2.

Bio-Plex Pro SARS-CoV-2 Neutralization Antibody Assays provide reliably measure neutralizing antibodies in less than 3 hours. Watch our webinar to learn more.

Circulation of SARS-CoV-2 in the global population led to the emergence of new variants threatening to undermine vaccine effectiveness. Understanding the immune response and its neutralizing abilities at both the patient level and globally could not only help prevent outbreaks but also mitigate the outcome for future pandemics.

Two years into the COVID-19 pandemic, trends point to a transition for the SARS-CoV-2 virus into an endemic agent. As major surveillance infrastructure scales back, it will be critical to maintain a cost-effective, simple, and rapid strategy for detecting and monitoring the spread of new variants. The key to such a strategy? Wastewater, where all disease agents leave their unique signature.

Wastewater-based epidemiology indirectly monitors infection rates in a community based on pathogen levels in local wastewater. Because symptomatic and asymptomatic SARS-CoV-2 infected individuals shed viral RNA in sewer systems, analysis of SARS-CoV-2 in sewage networks can provide information about SARS-CoV-2 infections within the community. However, the accuracy of these data depends on the quality of the wastewater testing method. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Droplet Digital PCR has proven that it has the sensitivity needed to detect outbreaks and monitor SARS-CoV-2 variants in communities via wastewater testing.

Although vaccines have helped alleviate the negative impact of COVID-19, its persistence across many areas of the globe reveals a continuous need for rapid, accurate, and economical COVID-19 testing. But is it even possible to isolate and detect viral RNA rapidly and economically? Here we highlight a repurposed tool for improved COVID-19 detection: Chelex 100 Resin and the related InstaGene Matrix for rapid, cost-effective viral RNA preservation and detection.

With COVID-19 vaccines now widely available, case numbers in many areas are falling. But the question remains: How long does vaccine-induced immunity last? Measuring isotype-specific antibodies against SARS-CoV-2 and the effectiveness of neutralizing antibodies against variants can help us better understand the duration and breadth of the humoral response. These data are critical to aid public health researchers and inform development decisions for vaccines and therapeutics. Read about the new Bio-Plex Pro Human SARS-CoV-2 Variant Neutralization Antibody 11-Plex Panel.